Canadian Parenting and Child Care Community

Title: Parents grapple with decisions on when to let kids walk to school alone
Post by: CareDC on April 14, 2009, 10:03:21 PM

The disappearance of an eight-year-old girl in Woodstock, Ont., is causing some parents to second-guess themselves on when it's OK to let their own children walk to and from school without adult supervision.

Calgary psychologist Scott Wooding says it's a reminder to teach kids about safety and rules about talking to strangers, but the number of incidents like this is "actually very limited."

"React by all means. But don't overact," said Wooding, the author of four parenting books.

"In other words, use it as a teachable moment. Use it to teach what can happen if you're not careful about who you talk to and who you go places with."

RCMP figures show that 60,582 children were reported missing in 2007, and the vast majority were runaways. Fifty-six were reported kidnapped by a stranger while 285 were abducted by a parent.

Title: Re: Parents grapple with decisions on when to let kids walk to school alone
Post by: spud on April 20, 2009, 12:46:28 PM

I think it is -and always has been- important to review safety rules and explore various situations with children 2x a year.once in fall and again in spring..talk about stranger safety, talk about which relatives and family friends are ok to go with, and when.. have a safety saying that you and your children know ..and will use if someone is to pick them up unexpectedly..have rules that the kids MUST come straight home to check in afterschool, and never have the option to go elsewhere, until after check inI have decided to use a cell phone with my oldest..who is 12 and is now starting to wander more.I always stress the importance of NUMBERS..children should walk in pairs or groups.